A shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis on Wednesday morning resulted in the deaths of two children and injuries to 17 other people, including 14 children and three elderly parishioners. The shooter, identified by law enforcement sources as 23-year-old Robin Westman, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the scene.
The attack unfolded shortly before 8:30 a.m. during a Mass celebrating the first week of the new school year. According to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, Westman, armed with a rifle, a shotgun, and a pistol, approached the church and fired through the windows into the pews where children were seated. The two children killed were 8 and 10 years old. The injured children, aged 6 to 15, are all expected to survive, as are the three adults in their 80s who were also wounded.
Chief O’Hara described the act as “absolutely incomprehensible,” and federal officials are investigating the incident as a potential act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics. Investigators are examining a manifesto-style video that Westman allegedly posted online. Court records indicate that in 2020, Westman’s name was legally changed from Robert to Robin, a change reportedly made because Westman identifies as female. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has urged the public not to direct hatred at the transgender community in the wake of the tragedy.
Authorities found that some church doors had been barricaded from the outside with wooden planks. Police confirmed that Westman, who had no extensive criminal history, legally purchased the weapons used in the attack recently and is believed to have acted alone. A family member, former Kentucky state lawmaker Bob Heleringer, identified himself as Westman’s uncle but said he had little contact with Westman in recent years. The shooting is the latest in a series of violent incidents in Minneapolis this week, though police do not believe it is connected to a separate shooting that occurred outside a high school the day before.
